What are the Differences Between Industrial Hemp and Marijuana?
There are still many people who just don’t understand the differences between industrial hemp and marijuana. Many people just consider them to be the same thing and without the right education and information getting out there, it’s going to be difficult to get laws passed to allow industrial hemp farming in the United States when people still aren’t supporting it due to their own lack of knowledge.
The other day while talking to a friend on the phone, I mentioned a fantastic banana hemp snack I had made for my daughter who is 18 months old. This particular friend sat in silence a good bit and then proceeded to tell me how she could not believe that I would knowingly give my daughter marijuana.
Alright, I will admit, I did laugh a bit by her statement, but to be honest, this is the problem with many people in this country and is exactly why industrial hemp still has a bad reputation and considered to be a drug by misinformed people. People don’t take the time to educate themselves on what hemp is, what health benefits it provides and how it can actually benefit this country on an economic level. And so my friends, it’s time for a little lesson on industrial hemp and THC.
First, let’s just squash the biggest and most obvious bug in front of us. Industrial hemp is NOT marijuana. You can’t get high from eating hemp seeds or drinking hemp milk. That yummy hemp butter you spread on your sandwiches isn’t going to get you high or give you the munchies…in fact hemp is a great weight-loss aid and can curb your appetite.

Photo provided by Aleks Wikipedia user.
Hemp is one of our very first agricultural crops and has been grown by American farmers since up to around the 1930’s. Washington and Jefferson both grew hemp and at one point, Americans could even pay their taxes with hemp. In fact, if you really want to get into the history of hemp you should read this.
Did you also know that hemp can be grown with no chemicals, pesticides or herbicides? That’s right, it’s completely organic. It’s also a great weed control…no not that weed…bad weeds like dandelions.
There are so many nutritional health benefits to hemp like the high protein or the fact that it contains all of the essential amino acids that our bodies need. It doesn’t stop there though. Hemp also is fantastic in beauty products as they contain natural moisturizers, anti-aging properties, and healing properties. It also is the perfect fiber to make clothing from or wonderful hemp paper. Our own Declaration of Independence was drafted on paper made from hemp. We can even make fuel and plastic from hemp.
What are the Differences Between Industrial Hemp and Marijuana?

Photo Provided by Barbetorte Wikipedia User.
So glad you asked! While marijuana and industrial hemp both come from the Cannabis sativa L plant, industrial hemp contains only about .3% THC (that’s what makes you high) while actual marijuana contains around 5-10% and sometimes more THC. Marijuana is cannabis that is grown for the buds of the plant that contain THC (these are the shorter bushy plants), while industrial hemp is referring to the cannabis sativa plants that are grown for its fibers and seeds use for nutritional purposes, clothing, oils and many other purposes that have nothing to do with getting high. (look more like tall skinny stalks).
The reason the THC is practically non-existent in industrial hemp is because it is not cultivated to produce the buds that contain THC. Without the buds, there is no marijuana. In fact, industrial hemp contains Cannabidiol (CBD) that actually lessens the psychoactive effects of THC by stabilizing disrupted receptor pathways in the brain. Seriously..if this were a drug, it would be the absolute worst recreational drug in the world!
Aside from the THC levels, there is actually a visual difference as well. Marijuana plants are typically wide and bushy and only grow to around five feet in height. Industrial hemp is typically grown up and to heights of 15 feet! The long skinny stalks are perfect for industrial use due to the fiber and the core material that can be used for many purposes like building.
What about the legal aspect in the differences?
While the DEA has made attempts to ban all products made from hemp, they haven’t yet won that battle in court (thank goodness). All it has the legal authority to as of now is ban products containing THC, but not to include hemp products with no measurable amount of THC.
Industrial hemp could be life changing for United States for its health benefits, environment and economic benefits. It’s time to start spreading the word around about industrial hemp and showing people what it is and what it isn’t. If you want to take it a step even further, take action by sending in letters to your senators and representatives.
Share this post on your Facebook, Tweet it on Twitter and shout about it from the rooftops. Hemp could change our world!
great bit of info
Thank you for the interesting post on hemp, Misty! I will have to investigate it a bit more and see if I can get seeds. When I was visiting Ghana a couple of years ago, there was a young man(European) who was quite excited about its potentail & growing it there. However, I don’t think he succeeded since he was smoking the other stuff too much. 🙂
It has a ton of potential, if only we could get it happening here more in the states. I definitely think it’s make a huge splash though! Thanks for commenting Lily.
I’m frighteningly allergic to marijuana smoke, so I have nothing nice to say about pot, but I love hemp as a crafting material. I think we should be using it in society as a staple for clothing and paper instead of cotton and wood! 🙂
I’m not much of a pot smoke either Hillary, I know plenty who are, it’s just not my thing. I don’t fault anyone for it if they choose to make that a part of their life, in fact I am definitely for the legalization of it, because I personally find it no worse than alcohol. But as far as hemp goes…absolutely! It puts much less impact on our environment than cotton and wood do (goodbye forests) and is better for us due to not having to use pesticides and other horrible stuff they have to put on other materials.
What sort of crafts are you making with hemp? I’d love to hear what you’re doing with it.
Oh gosh; well I know now!
It’s the same thing, industrial hemp is cannabis sativa, I grow and smoke cannabis sativa, the cannabis plant only produces THC if it don’t get pollinated , once pollinated , it stops producing THC , the ultra violet radiation from the sun starts degenerating the THC , so for industrial hemp they plant male and female plants together to insure pollination, stopping the THC production, medical cannabis is kept virgin so it keeps producing THC , marijuana is a slang word like joint or doobie, our word in america for the cannabis plant is hemp, the Spanish word is cañamo . The Hebrew word is kaneh Bos or Qaneh Bos , in Greek it is kannabis , in Latin it is cannabis. cannabis has 3 primary strains, sativa, indica, ruderalis, sativa is the tallest with average CBD and THC, indica is mid sized plant high in THC low to average CBD , ruderalis is shortest in height, and has low THC but high CBD , don’t need to breed out THC , for low THC use the ruderalis or pollinate the plant, if you need CBD but no THC , use the male plant, they never produce THC. Sigh………
Industrial hemp is legal in all 50 of the United States of America . Medical it is legal in 22+ states, recreational only 5 states in America , in Uruguay it is legal for medical, industrial, recreational and spiritual uses, cannabis is a Christian sacrament , Eucharist and part of the holy oil of Moses (exodus 30 verse 23 of the holy Torah tells us kaneh bosm is cannabis/hemp it’s not calamus ) or the nazar oil of Jesus Christ , Christ is a title received for being anointed with holy oil. Have fun learning it’s many uses, it is truly a gift from God.